Friday, December 25, 2015

I'm going to keep this post short. I'm actually writing this on a Wednesday and scheduling it for Friday due to Christmas and all of the things I have to do leading up to it. My kids are so excited they're practically bouncing off the walls, so keeping up with them is challenging enough without everything else going on.

It's been a great week so far, though I haven't gotten as much writing done as I normally might. Given the fact that it's the week of a major holiday, though, I think I have a decent excuse.

This will be my last post of the year since next Friday will be the first day of 2016. I'll see all of you then.

Saturday, December 19, 2015

It's that time of year where we look back at the past year and dust off an old blog post that we're particularly proud of or that we feel didn't receive enough attention. That's right. It's time for the Deja Vu Blogfest! I'd like to thank DL Hammons for making this blogfest possible.

My post comes from the A to Z Challenge. I experimented with Choose Your Own Adventure stories, and I had fun writing them. This story was posted on April 28th, and it was based off the word "xenocracy."

Enjoy!

* * *

I have a Choose Your Own Adventure story for you today! This is the last one for the A to Z Challenge. These little things have been fun, but also challenging. Then again, I think that's the point of this, isn't it?

Today's word is: XENOCRACY

A xenocracy is a government by composed of a body of foreigners. I decided to go the alien invasion route with this one.

Enjoy!

Xenocracy

Life post-invasion isn’t all roses, sure, but you can at least say that you snagged a decent job. Okay, people in the street call you a traitor and throw things at you, but the benefits are good.

Well, they’re tolerable, anyway. And pre-invasion you wouldn’t have been excited about cleaning the toilets for the new seven-foot-tall, green skinned leaders of the xenocratic government that now rules all of Earth. Considering the other jobs available, though, you’ll take what you can get. Most days, at least.

Today, however, you are about to deliver some unpleasant news. All of the toilets in the palace are overflowing, and you suspect it was sabotage of a most disgusting nature.

When you get to the throne room, the door is guarded by a formidable man. “There is a meeting at this time,” he says in a stout tone. “Whatever business you have, it must wait.”

A.)If you decide to ignore him and insist that it is too urgent to wait, click HERE.

Friday, December 18, 2015

For those of you who are here to read my Celebrate the Small Things post, you can find that here. I'm also posting for the Deja Vu Blogfest tomorrow, so feel free to come back for that if you're interested.Now, I hope you'll stick around for a cover re-reveal.

Kyra Lennon's book Game On has a brand new cover. In celebration of this big occasion, Game on will be free today, so get your copy while you can!

★☆★☆COVER RE-REVEAL★☆★☆

Game Onby Kyra Lennon

A note from Kyra:

Game On was first published in 2012. In its time, it has been through a heck of a lot of covers, but this is definitely the final one! The reason for this particular change is that back in July this year, the rather beautiful Scott King did a photo shoot for me with the equally stunning Lucy Laming – shot by super snapper Eric Battershell. The chosen photo of Scott and Lucy will be on the cover of the final Game On book – due for release next year. Since Scott King is the perfect Radleigh McCoy, I figured it made sense to have him on the cover for Book One to match!

ALSO, the book itself has undergone a bit of a change. There have been a few updates made to the book’s content – and this includes no longer cutting away from the bedroom scenes. It was a mistake I have berated myself for ever since publication that I didn’t include a sex scene. The nature of Leah and Radleigh’s relationship almost demands the bedroom scene to be written in full. I feel like without it, I haven’t been true to the overall tone of passion in the pages of the rest of the story.

These updates, and the cover, will be live before Christmas. If you have already bought a copy of Game On – I am hoping with everything I have that Amazon will be kind enough to give you a little update button on your accounts so you can re-download. If not, I will find a way around the issue somehow!

The paperback version of Game On will be updated also, but will take a little longer due to needing to order proof copies, etc, as will the audiobook, but that will take quite a while longer as it depends on my narrator's availability.

Please keep an eye on my Facebook page for further updates! Thank you!

**

Title:Game On (Game On Series #1)

Author:Kyra Lennon

Genre:New Adult Contemporary Romance

Cover Models:Scott King and Nadine Hart

Blurb: After swapping her small town life to work for one of the top soccer teams in the U.S, Leah Walker thought she could finally leave the ghosts of her past behind.

Los Angeles has everything Leah ever wanted. A great job, supportive friends, and most of all, an escape from the mundane English village she grew up in. The only cloud on her horizon is soccer superstar, Radleigh McCoy. He’s arrogant, sexy - the epitome of everything Leah used to crave in a man.

But Leah is not that person anymore. After getting her heart trampled on, she knows the damage caused by guys who only have one thing on their mind. She’s determined never to go through it again, but when McCoy makes scoring with Leah his new goal, they become locked in a heated battle of wills which threatens everything she’s built for herself.

As circumstances throw them together, the chemistry between them becomes harder to ignore, and Leah is forced to ask herself whether she has really changed at all.

Kyra Lennon is having a cover re-reveal for her book Game On, so if you want to know more about that, check it out here.

This week I'm celebrating the conclusion of the blog tour for my novella Self-Help 101 or: How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Family. Thanks again to everyone who helped make it a successful tour!

Christmas is next week, and my kids are well-aware of that fact. The excitement is contagious around here.

Writing continues to go well. My progress may be inhibited by my coffee pot self-destructing, but I intend to get a replacement as soon as possible. If I don't, awful things may happen. :)

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Thanks to everyone who helped to make my Self-Help 101 or: How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Family blog tour a successful one!

As you'll probably recall, I set up a giveaway, and now it's time to announce the winners! At the beginning of all of this I said that I would be giving away twelve e-copies of my novella. As it turns out, that isn't entirely true. Part of me was concerned that I might not even have twelve people enter, but I did. In fact, a total of fourteen people entered for a chance to win. I could have stuck to my original plan to give away twelve copies, but I didn't feel like leaving anyone out. That's why, in the spirit of the season, I've decided to give away copies to all fourteen people who entered.

I know the header of the giveaway widget is no longer accurate, but if The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy trilogy can have five books, my twelve book giveaway can actually involve giving away fourteen copies. I'll be emailing the winners soon, and I'll get the prizes sent out as soon as possible.

This is the final day of the blog tour for my Christmas novella Self-Help 101 or: How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Family. Today I'm with Cathrina Constantine. The subject for the day is mistletoe.

Also, this is your last chance to enter to win a free copy! What are you waiting for? Enter below!

“Our days together are passing far too quickly,” I
whisper. I run my trembling fingers
through Rafael’s dark hair as the sun rises again, bathing us both in light. The rays catch Earth’s atmosphere for a few
moments, making it flash a vibrant blue, and it looks as if the entire planet
hasn’t been rendered uninhabitable by a brutal war.

This is sunrise number eight. Our time together is halfway over. Eight mini-days remain.

“That’s why we’re going to make the most of them,”
Rafael says. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it
Anouk? Imagine how different it would be
if we could live down there.”

It’s a breathtaking thought, even more stunning
than the marble of a world rotating quietly below us or the deep brown of
Rafael’s eyes. Maybe it’s masochistic to
even entertain the notion, but this is the one 24-hour time period out of the
entire year when I allow myself to do it.

“We’d get a house,” I say. “I’ve seen some pictures of what they looked
like. We’d have a house with a lot of
rooms, a porch, and a yard with grass.”
There, inside our house, all of our days were long and full.

Rafael hums in approval as he reaches for my
hand. His palm is calloused from years
of hard labor. In his section of the
station, everyone who’s capable of doing so is expected to start working full
time at age fourteen. Seven years have
passed since then, and I’ve seen plenty of other changes that came along with
the roughened skin. His smiles came more
easily. His laughter once shook his
whole body with its strength.

“Grass. I
wonder what grass smells like.”

I shrug. “No
one knows, so I guess that means whatever we imagine is the truth. There’s no one here to tell us otherwise.” It’s a childish idea, and I know it. No matter how hard I try to ignore reality,
it won’t go away.

We have eight orbits left. Eight more cycles of ninety minutes apiece
before we go back to our respective lives.

“Our own little truth that no one else knows. I like that.”
He smiles.

“Me too.”

I cast my eye around the mess hall that’s been
rearranged for the day. The banner
proclaiming “Happy Unity Day!” is drooping above the doorway and looking rather
ragged around the edges. This is
understandable considering it’s been used for at least the last five years. Supplies are limited, so this holiday that
was conceived on our little island in space doesn’t typically have much in
terms of decorations, but that isn’t much of a problem. It’s sandwiched snugly between Hanukkah and
Christmas this year, the timing meant to piggyback off the general feeling of
goodwill that’s supposed to abound. Judging by the distance separating the small
clusters of humanity that dot the room, the feeling of goodwill wore off a
little while ago. Most people have
already made their way back to their respective parts of the station.

“Do you think your mother is still watching?”
Rafael asks. He must think that’s the
reason for my distraction.

I can almost feel the gaze of the camera piercing
my back. “I’m sure she is. She says that she’s obligated to keep a close
eye on things since this entire station is her responsibility, but I know
better.” She’s never liked that I fell
in love with a Laborer. She’s reminded
me time and again that there’s no future in it, and I know she’s right. As an Administrator, I’m destined to end up
with a fellow Administrator. If only she
understood that I can’t just turn my feelings off.

“What if we could run? We’d go and hide in another part of the
station for a few hours,” Rafael says wistfully. “We could pretend we’re in our house where we
can spend our days however we like.”

I’ve pictured this many times before. What would it be like to steal a few private
moments, to have something more than the supervised hours of daydreaming a life
together? Unfortunately, time alone
could lead to unsanctioned babies, and had in the past. That’s why this holiday is governed by such
stringent rules.

Each section of the station needs to maintain a
certain population size, and the people who live there perform their
predetermined tasks. They have children
with people within their section.
Educational resources are allocated accordingly. We’re told that, with such a small
population, we need to do all we can to maintain stability. The sacrifices we make are for the greater
good.

Sometimes I even believe that, but not today.

“That would be amazing.” I lean against his shoulder, savoring the
feeling of his arm sliding around my waist.
The rules might be taking a lot away from us, but they can’t take this
away. Not yet, at least.

One year, hopefully a long time from now, Rafael
will tell me that he’s married someone he can have a future with, or it will be
me telling him the same. We’ll both look
back at the previous Unity Day and reflect on how we didn’t know it would be
the last one we spent together.

We’ll have children with other people, as we’re
expected to do.

We’ll live according to the rules of our
classification. There’s no other choice.

Until then, we’ll spend this holiday pretending
each turn around Earth represents one full day, and we’ll fill that time with
all the happiness we can.

Eight miniature days left. Eight orbits around a
dead world. While it’s impossible not to
think of what might have been, I don’t want that to be all we have. I kiss his cheek, the stubble scratching at
my skin as I slowly pull away. “You know
what is amazing, though?”

Tuesday, December 15, 2015

The blog tour for my Christmas novella Self-Help 101 or: How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Family is continuing with a stop over at Melissa Ann's blog. The topic for today is Santa hats.

The giveaway is still going, so if you'd like a chance to win a free copy of the book, you can enter below!

Monday, December 14, 2015

If you're here to see my entry for the Christmas Joy Blog Hop, keep scrolling and you'll find it. I just wanted to start things out by letting everyone know that the blog tour for my Christmas novella Self-Help 101 or: How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Family is continuing with C.D. Gallant-King. Feel free to stop by and say hello!

My giveaway is also still going, so if you'd like to enter for the chance to win a free e-copy of my novella, enter below! You can also find the purchase links HERE.

The task is simple. In order to participate, we need to share one or all of the following:

-A special Christmas memory

-Favorite Christmas song/carol

-Share why you celebrate Christmas

-Favorite decorations, favorite food or treats, etc.

-The best gift you ever gave or received

-Traditions

Now that I have kids, my favorite part of Christmas is watching their faces light up when they see light displays, or how excited they get when we put up the tree, or the absolute joy they exude when they see presents waiting for them under the tree on Christmas morning. That kind of happiness is contagious.

I found some pictures from Christmas past that captured the joy of my children during the Christmas season, and I decided to share some of them with all of you.

Thanks for stopping by, and be sure to visit some of the other participants!

Poor Jude got sick and had to miss the Christmas concert he's been looking forward to for weeks. He also had to miss Doughnuts for Dads this morning, which is where dads go to the school in the morning to eat doughnuts with their kids. I feel so bad for him having to miss two fun things he was looking forward to, but the good news is that he isn't too sick. He's vomited a couple of times, and his temperature hasn't gotten above 100, so it could be far worse.

My writing progress has been a little slower this week, but I'm still making progress, so I'm happy about that.The weather here has been really good this week, and I'm definitely glad to see that.What would you like to celebrate?

Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Today I am continuing the blog tour celebrating the release of my Christmas novella Self-Help 101 or: How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Family with a stop over at Cover Girls. Today's topic is Christmas trees.

Monday, December 7, 2015

Today I'm continuing my blog tour to promote my Christmas novella Self-Help 101 or: How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Family with the one and only (if you don't count the clones, anyway) Alex J. Cavanaugh. You'll definitely want to stop by and read my tips for making Christmas caroling as easy and fun as possible.

Before you run off, though, look below for a chance to win one of twelve free e-copies of the book.

Friday, December 4, 2015

I'll start off by celebrating the obvious. For those of you who've been around recently, you'll know that I released a novella this week. Self-Help 101 or: How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Familyis now available. M.J. Fifield is hosting me for my blog tour today, so be sure to stop by if you can. If you're interested in getting a copy of the book, you can go HERE to find all the purchase links. You can also enter below to win a free copy.

Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Before we get to my post for the IWSG, I'd like to take a moment to tell you that Jackie @ Bouquet of Books is hosting me today for my blog tour. Feel free to stop by and help me celebrate the release of my humorous Christmas novella Self-Help 101 or: How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Family.

It's the first Wednesday of the month! Let's convene another meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Our esteemed leader is Alex J. Cavanaugh, and his co-hosts for this month are Sandra Hoover, Mark Koopmans, Doreen McGettigan, Megan Morgan, and Melodie Campbell.Also be sure to visit the IWSG website!This has been a big month for me. As you all know if you saw the beginning of this post, I had a novella come out yesterday. I've also started writing the next novella in that series, and I found a short story contest that I'm thinking about entering. I also signed up for the next WEP challenge, which should be an interesting one. If you're interested in writing about a holiday celebration that's out of this world, check it out!While I have a lot to be excited about, I still have my insecurities. As many writers out there will understand, I look at my sales numbers and, while I'm grateful for each sale I make, I still think wistfully of how nice it would be if those numbers were higher. I'm not asking for Harry Potter-level success or anything, but I'd love to reach more people with my work. And this is where my natural awkwardness around people probably works against me. I've never been good with marketing myself. I'd prefer to let my work speak for itself, but how can my work do that if I can't convince people to take a chance on it first? It's a bit of a conundrum. I do know this much. If I didn't have the support of fellow bloggers, I'd really be stumbling around in the dark, and I'd like to thank all of you for what you do. It means a lot.I'd say this past year has been productive, though. I've put two novellas and a short story collection out into the world, and I've lost more than 30 pounds. My kids are alive and healthy, and my husband has been supportive of my crazy/creative nature. There's a lot to be positive about.

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

It's here! The day has finally come and my newest novella Self-Help 101 or: How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Family is now available! It's always an exciting time. This is the first book in a series of four that will be taking over the next year of my life, but it's good to have a plate full of writing ideas.

Now, I was originally supposed to kick off my blog tour elsewhere, but the person who'd volunteered to host me had to pull out for personal reasons. I didn't have any luck finding anyone else last minute, but no worries. I decided to just kick things off here. Why not? These things happen, and sometimes all you can do is go with it. If any of you would like to help me out by tweeting or sharing this post to get the word out, I'd really appreciate it!

To get everyone in
the holiday mood, I’d like to warn you about something you can expect at this
time of year. And yes, I wrote this in
the style of the movie trailers I grew up watching. Just read this with that voice in mind. Many of you probably know which voice I’m
talking about. If not, you can plenty of
examples online.

Coming this holiday season to a gathering
near you . . .

In a world decked out in holiday cheer, you
can’t escape them. They’ll find
you! They blow up the boundaries of good
taste and offend the rules of aesthetics with their tackiness. They will offend your eyes and provide ample
opportunities for embarrassing photos.

Prepare yourself for the onslaught of the
ugly Christmas sweaters!

There are actually
ugly sweaters for every holiday, but ugly Christmas sweaters are notorious. If you celebrate Hanukkah, though, there are sweaters
for you too, and they’re just as offensive to the sensibilities as their
Christmas counterparts!

If you’d like to
find the perfect ugly sweater for you, just do a quick internet search. Did you know there are 3D Christmas
sweaters? Seriously, look it up!

Now I hope you’ll
enjoy a snippet from my novella Self-Help
101 or: How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Family.

* *
*

If you’re reading
this book, I can assume you either want to take over the world and are looking
for some pointers, or you simply want to be entertained. I hope that you’re able to get what you want
from the experience of reading this, but there’s no guarantee. No refunds, either. You may walk away from this scratching your
head and wondering what in the world is wrong with me, and I won’t lie. That would be an understandable response.

* *
*

Title:Self-Help 101 or:
How I Learned to Take Over the World Through Tolerating My Family

Author:L.G. Keltner

Genre: Holiday/Humor

Length:27,000

Cover Art:L.G. Keltner

Release Date:December 1, 2015

Blurb:

Dani Finklemeier
has decided to write a self-help book about how to take over the world, but
she’s not sure where to start. After
all, she’s only seventeen and looking for a better way to make money than
babysitting. She buys a self-help book
that promises to teach her how to write a self-help book in the hope of getting
the job done.

Not that it’ll be
easy to get any work done this holiday season.
Her family is staying at the house for Christmas, and fights break out
almost immediately. Dani also has to
deal with the fallout from an unexpected kiss with her best friend Seth and the
feelings that go along with it. On edge
around her family and unsure how to interact with the one person she’s trusted
with everything in the past, she can only take what inspiration she can from
the crazy circumstances surrounding her and see what happens.

One way or another,
it should be an interesting holiday.

Bio:

L.G. Keltner
spends most of her time trying to write while also cleaning up after her crazy
but wonderful kids and hanging out with her husband. Her favorite genre of all time is science
fiction, and she’s been trying to write novels since the age of six. Needless to say, those earliest attempts
weren’t all that good.

Her non-writing
hobbies include astronomy and playing Trivial Pursuit.

I Survived!

Available Now!

Available Now!

About Me

I am many things: a writer, a mother, a wife, a certified nutcase. Well, maybe not certified. No one ever had me tested. My characters exist in my head like multiple personalities. I deal with my insanity by putting it on paper for others to read.